Popular iOS game 'Star Wars: Tiny Death Star' finally makes its way to US App Store

After being out for weeks in the Australian iOS App Store, the Star Wars-themed version of NimbleBits' 2011 iPhone Game of the Year Tiny Tower, "Star Wars: Tiny Death Star," has been released in the U.S.

Star Wars: Tiny Death Star is a mashup of the now Disney-owned franchise "Star Wars" and elevator simulation strategy game Tiny Tower. Publisher LucasArts initially soft-launched the title in Australia and recently expanded availability to the New Zealand App Store.

Gameplay is nearly identical to Tiny Tower, but instead of a building, players buy, build and manage various levels of the Empire's Death Star. The object of the game is to attract "bitizens," or non-playable characters, provide them with work and housing units, finish tasks to collect coins and build your Death Star from the proceeds. Bitizens include 30 different species from the Star Wars universe.

Like Tiny Tower, Tiny Death Star uses the elevator mechanic to shuttle NPCs from floor to floor, which is where the time management aspect of the game comes in. Wait times vary depending on the task, as do the coin rewards for each. Gathering more assets allows players to build higher, as well as lower, thus unlocking new tasks and challenges.

Star Wars-themed quests add to a player's Death Star and move along the game's somewhat loose plot. New to the title are collectable characters, which can be spotted mingling among the regular bitizens. In addition, Tiny Death Star features "story moments" taken from the "Star Wars" movies, including appearances by Chewbacca, Han Solo, Luke Skywalker and others.

Purchasable in-game currency is still present in the form of "Imperial Bux," which can be used to speed up tasks or complete quests. Players can earn bux through the course of normal gameplay, but opportunities are few and far between. As a special launch promotion, LucasArts is giving early downloaders 50 percent more starting bux for a limited time.

Star Wars: Tiny Death Star comes in at 60MB and can be downloaded for free from the iOS App Store.